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Swift Engineering
American Spacecraft engineering company

Swift Engineering is an American engineering firm that builds autonomous systems, helicopters, submarines, spacecraft, ground vehicles, robotics, and composite parts. The chairman and CEO is Hiro Matsushita, a former racecar driver and grandson of the founder of Panasonic, Konosuke Matsushita.

Swift used to produce racing cars for open-wheel racing series including Formula Ford, Formula Atlantic, the Champ Car World Series and Formula Nippon. They company has designed and manufactured over 500 race cars.

Swift is certified to AS9100, ISO 14001 and ISO 27000.

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History

Swift Engineering was founded in 1983 by David Bruns, Alex Cross, R. K. Smith, and Paul White under the name Swift Racing Cars.1 Their first car, the DB-1, was a Formula Ford which won the SCCA National Championship in its debut race.2 The company later built cars for Sports 2000, Formula Ford 2000, Formula Atlantic, and CART. Swift chassis won the Atlantic Championship from 1989 to 1992 and British Formula Renault in 1990.

In 1991, Swift was purchased by Panasonic executive and former Indycar racing driver Hiro Matsushita,3 grandson of Panasonic founder Konosuke Matsushita,4 who renamed the firm Swift Engineering. Under his direction, Swift moved up to the CART World Series for 1997, with two cars entered by Newman/Haas Racing and driven by Michael Andretti and Christian Fittipaldi. In CART, Swifts got four wins and 24 podiums from 182 race entries. Tarso Marques was the last driver to race a Swift chassis in CART in the 2000 season.

In 2000, Swift Engineering started to provide vertically integrated, multi-disciplined product development services including design, development, engineering, testing, and rapid manufacturing of prototypes, demonstrators, and pre-production articles.

In 2018, Swift Engineering formed a joint venture, Swift Xi Inc. [ja; fr], with the Kobe Institute of Computing to open its first office abroad in Kobe, Japan. Since 2018, Yale physicist and executive Nick Barua has overseen management.5

Racing cars

The first Swift racecar was the DB-1 Formula Ford. The car won its debut race, the 1983 SCCA Runoffs at Road Atlanta. The DB-1 was the third car designed by Bruns and was considered to be a design simplification of Burns's previous design, the Automotive Development ADF. The car was considered a landmark design that rendered prior Formula Ford models obsolete. The DB-1 had the lowest aerodynamic drag of any Formula Ford at its release. Over 100 DB-1s were sold in the 18 months following the car's release. The car won 10 Formula Ford championships over the next 13 years. The closely related DB6 won an additional six championships with the last one in 2008. The success of the car was considered one of the factors that resulted in the slow decline of Formula Ford in the US after 1984.678

In 1998, Swift became the sole supplier for the new spec regulation Toyota Atlantic Championship. In 2006, the Atlantic race series became a part of the Champ Car (formerly CART) organization and was renamed the Champ Car Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda. Swift built a new car for the series, using 016.a as a chassis code. Swift became the sole supplier of chassis for the Japanese Formula Nippon championship in 2009 with the 017.n chassis (also known as the FN09).9 An updated model called SF13 was used in 2013. The company proposed a derivative of the 017.n, the 020.I, in response to Indy Lights' requirement for a new chassis for the 2014 season.10

Race cars designed and built by Swift

YearCarRacing SeriesImageTitle
1983Swift DB1Formula Ford 160011
1984Swift DB2Sports 200012Michael Ringström driving a Swift DB2 at the qualification of Suttgarter Rössle's AvD 100 Meilen race
1988Swift DB3Formula Ford 200013
1989Swift DB4Formula AtlanticHiro Matsushita in Toyota Atlantic Championship 1989 with Swift DB414
1990Swift DB5Sports 2000"1990 Swift". Retrieved November 10, 2021.15
1991Swift DB6Formula Ford 2000 1600/2000
1997Swift 007.iCART16Mario Andretti at 1998 Goodwood Festival of Speed with Swift 007.I
1998Swift 008.aFormula Atlantic17
1998Swift 009.cCART
1999Swift 010.cCART18
2000Swift 011.cCART
2002Swift 014.aFormula Atlantic19Jason Byers holds his arm up to the crowd after winning the Formula Atlantic class at the 2012 SCCA National Championship Runoffs
2006Swift 016.aFormula Atlantic20Raphael Matos celebrating a victory in his Swift 016.a Atlantic Championship car in 2007
2007Swift 016.aFormula AtlanticGiacomo Ricci (foreground) passing Frankie Muniz in their Swift 016.a machines during the 2007 Houston race.
2007Swift 016.aFormula AtlanticRobert Wickens driving at the Grand Prix of Houston Champ Car Atlantic support race in 2007.
2009Swift 017.nFormula Nippon21Heamin Choi celebrating in his Swift 017.n
2010Swift 017.nFormula NipponFormula Nippon 2010 Rd.2 Motegi: André Lotterer(Team Petronas Team TOM'S) during the Sunday free practice session.
2010Swift FN09Formula NipponMotorsport Japan 2010: Swift FN09's front wing.
2011Swift 014.aFormula AtlanticFormula Atlantic winner Michael Mallinen racing in rain at the 2011 SCCA National Runoffs.
2012Swift 014.a (Toyota)SCCA National Championship RunoffsJason Byers holds his arm up to the crowd after winning the Formula Atlantic class at the 2012 SCCA National Championship Runoffs
2013Swift 014.a (Toyota)SCCA National Championship RunoffsFrench racing to a third-place finish in C Sport Racer at Road America during the 2013 SCCA National Championship Runoffs22

Aviation

Beginning in 1997, Swift diversified into aerospace/aviation markets, working with major companies including Northrop Grumman, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, SpaceX, Sikorsky, and others. Swift has also worked for governmental agencies such as NASA.

Notable Aviation products of Swift

YearNameTypeImageTitleRole
2001Northrop Grumman BatReconnaissance UAVDuring experimentation conducted by U.S. Fourth Fleet and Navy Warfare Development Command (NWDC), the Northrop Grumman Bat unmanned aircraft system flies over the joint high-speed vessel USNS Spearhead (JHSV-1) during its maiden flight off of a U.S. Navy vessel in the Straits of Florida.Engineering, Analysis & Manufacturing
2007Eclipse ECJ / 400Civil utility aircraftEclipse ECJ at Airventure 2007.Engineering, Analysis & Manufacturing
2013Northrop Grumman MQ-4C TritonMaritime unmanned surveillance and reconnaissance aerial vehicle and patrol aircraftMQ-4C Triton Test Flight with Multi-Intelligence UpgradeSupporting Northrop Grumman in the design and manufacturing of composite structures.
2015Sikorsky S-97 RaiderReconnaissance and attack compound helicopterS-97 Raider in flightEngineering, manufacturing, etc.23
2017Echo VoyagerAutonomous underwater vehicle(AUV)Engineering & Manufacturing (Details are confidential)24
2017Swift020/021VTOL type UAVSwift020 flying over Kobe 2018Design, manufacturing
2019Sikorsky–Boeing SB-1 DefiantCompound helicopterA Boeing-Sikorsky flight demo of the SB-1 Defiant, the SARA, and the S-97 Raider at the William P. Gwinn airport in West Palm Beach, FL, Feb. 20, 2020.A major portion of the airframe structure was designed and manufactured at Swift’s facility in San Clemente, California by an integrated team of Swift and Boeing employees.25
2019Sikorsky Raider XReconnaissance and attack compound helicopterSwift Engineering worked with Sikorsky on FARA Raider-X helicopter. A major portion of the airframe structure is designed and manufactured at Swift’s facility in San Clemente, California.26
2021Lockheed Martin X-59 QuesstExperimental supersonic aircraftNASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft sits on the ramp at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, California during sunrise, shortly after completion of painting. With its unique design, including a 38-foot-long nose, the X-59 was built to demonstrate the ability to fly supersonic, or faster than the speed of sound, while reducing the typically loud sonic boom produced by aircraft at such speeds to a quieter sonic “thump”. The X-59 is the centrepiece of NASA’s Quesst mission, which seeks to solve one of the major barriers to supersonic flight over land, currently banned in the United States, by making sonic booms quieter.Engineering, Analysis & Manufacturing
2021Swift CraneVTOL type UAVSwift Crane flying over Awaji Island, Hyogo 2023Design, manufacturing<
2021Swift Ultra Long Endurance (SULE) [ja]High-altitude platform stationFirst test flight at Spaceport America in New Mexico, USA in July 2020Design, manufacturing

Killer Bee

Swift Engineering designed, built, and delivered the runway-independent Killer Bee blended wing UAV and its mobile launch/retrieval system in 2002. Northrop Grumman bought the Killer Bee UAV product line from Swift Engineering, and renamed it as the Northrop Grumman Bat in April 2009.27 It has been used primarily as an ISR gathering tool, and features a 10-ft wingspan with 30-lb payload capacity.

Eclipse 400

In 2007 Swift Engineering produced the prototype Eclipse 400 single-engine jet aircraft under contract to Eclipse Aviation. The aircraft was built in secrecy at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia and first flown on 2 July 2007.28 Swift supplies high-strength, low-weight composite parts and assemblies to several aerospace industry customers. Engineering consultancy and designing and producing tooling for composite parts are further aspects of the business.29

Sikorsky–Boeing SB-1 Defiant

Swift Engineering Inc. joined the Sikorsky-Boeing team in 2015 to support the development of the Sikorsky–Boeing SB-1 Defiant Multi-Role Technology Demonstrator (JMR TD), with the design and manufacturing of a significant portion of the airframe structure.30

Swift020/021

In 2014, Swift started developing the Swift020 fully electric, fully autonomous VTOL UAS. This aircraft is runway-independent and transitions to horizontal flight through its autopilot software.31 the first UAS featuring X-blade technology, made its first fully autonomous flight demonstration in the city of Kobe, Japan on July 21, 2018.32 It takes off and lands like a quadrotor but transitions to efficient fixed-wing forward flight without additional launch and recovery equipment, vastly reducing operational time and cost.3334 It has a 4-meter wingspan, 2–3 hours of endurance, and a 1.5-kg payload.

Swift Crane

The Swift Crane [ja; simple] is a VTOL unmanned aerial vehicle designed and developed by Swift Engineering. It is a fixed-wing design and can take off and land vertically. This drone features a large wing and four propellers. Swift Engineering initially released the Swift020 model, which was primarily used for research and development purposes, and later upgraded it to the Swift021. The latest version of the drone, the Swift Crane, is a commercialized variant.35

Swift Ultra Long Endurance (SULE)

In 2018 Swift proposed to design, fabricate, and fly a Swift Ultra Long Endurance (SULE) [ja] 30-day mission high-altitude long endurance (HALE) UAS with flight tests including 24-hrs, 48-hrs, and 7-days during the Phase 2 timeline for NASA.36 All operations, ground control, safety, reviews, and payload will be included in these test flights and within the proposed 2-year timeframe.37 Swift HALE completed its first test flight from Spaceport America in New Mexico in 2020.38

Swift has achieved a remarkable milestone with its SULE (Swift Ultra Long Endurance) aircraft, soaring to an incredible altitude of 55,904 feet above Mean Sea Level (MSL) during a pioneering flight on September 29-30, 2024. This groundbreaking 24-hour journey not only paves the way for scientific exploration and environmental monitoring but also enhances opportunities in defense and aerospace. Taking off from and landing at Spaceport America in New Mexico, this successful flight has more than doubled the aircraft's previous altitude record of 25,000 feet, demonstrating the boundless potential of innovation and exploration.39

XLUUV submarine

In 2017, Swift Engineering designed, fabricated, and delivered QTY 10, 10-ft Iridium NEXT payload adapter cylinders, and structures for a 50 ft. XLUUV unmanned submarine.

Structure

Swift Engineering is the parent of a diverse set of subsidiaries.

SubsidiaryBusinessExecutive Leader
Swift Xi Inc.Engineering Company Nick Barua - COO40
HyperkelpOcean data as a service company41Graeme Rae - CEO

Recognitions

  • 2012: Swift Engineering received the JEC Americas Innovation Award for its out-of-autoclave process42
  • 2012: Northrop Grumman Small Business Supplier of the Year, awarded from 1500 suppliers
  • 2013: Swift Engineering has been chosen as a "Best in Class" A&D Company to Watch by Aviation Week43
  • 2018: Swift proposed to design, fabricate, and fly a Swift Ultra Long Endurance (SULE) 30-day mission HALE UAS with flight tests including 24-hrs, 48-hrs, and 7-days during the Phase 2 timeline for NASA. All operations, ground control, safety, reviews, and payload will be included in these test flights and within the proposed 2-year timeframe.44
  • 2019: Swift Engineering has been selected out of 25 companies around the world to install a UAS academy for the Ministry of National Security (Bahamas), to deploy a suite of drones to support the country's command, control, communication, and ISR efforts.45
  • 2019: Swift is delivering a pair of low-cost (90% reduction), low-weight (50% reduction) telepresence robotic arm replacements to NASA for their Valkyrie humanoid robotic assembly.
  • 2019: Swift Engineering has been selected for the design and construction of Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) Airframe for Sikorsky.46
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Swift Engineering.

References

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  2. "First Win PR" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 7, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110707152050/http://www.apexspeed.com/swift/documents/FirstWinNewsRelease.pdf ↩

  3. Henderson, Martin (September 24, 1997). "HIRO AT LARGE". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 15, 2023. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-sep-24-sp-35775-story.html ↩

  4. https://www.panasonic.com/global/corporate/history/konosuke-matsushita.html/ Archived November 6, 2021, at the Wayback Machine The Founder, Konosuke Matsushita https://www.panasonic.com/global/corporate/history/konosuke-matsushita.html/ ↩

  5. "Dr. Nick Barua: Multi-Faceted Career of Yale Physicist to Japan's Business Icon". May 11, 2023. Retrieved August 3, 2023. https://timeiconic.com/dr-nick-barua-multi-faceted-career-of-yale-physicist-to-japans-business-icon/ ↩

  6. Egan, Peter (March 1984). "Swift DB-1, Testing the new Formula Ford national champion". Road and Track. pp. 61–63. ↩

  7. Nickless, Steve (1993). Anatomy & Development of the Formula Ford Race Car. Osceola, WI: Motorbooks International. pp. 59–63, 116. ISBN 087938-807-2. 087938-807-2 ↩

  8. Zurschmeide, Jeff (July 2017). "They Can't Do That... Can They?". Sports Car Magazine. SCCA. pp. 32–37. https://www.scca.com/articles/2010089-sportscar-feature-impossible ↩

  9. "2009 Formula Nippon cars to be made in USA". August 30, 2007. http://www.autoblog.com/2007/08/30/2009-formula-nippon-cars-to-be-made-in-usa/ ↩

  10. Pruett, Marshall (August 28, 2012). "INDYCAR: Swift Files 2014 Indy Lights Proposal". SPEED Channel. Fox Sports. Archived from the original on August 30, 2012. Retrieved August 29, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120830013641/http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/indycar-swift-files-2014-indy-lights-proposal/ ↩

  11. "1989 Swift DB-1 Formula Ford". May 18, 2018. Retrieved November 10, 2021. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1989-swift-db-1-formula-ford-race-car/ ↩

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  18. "1999 Swift 010.c Indycar". Retrieved November 10, 2021. https://www.conceptcarz.com/z29728/swift-010c-indycar.aspx ↩

  19. Huschilt, Tom; Norris, Chris; Roberts, Neil; Page, Mark (December 2, 2002). "Development of the Swift 014.a Racecar for the CART Toyota Atlantic Championship Series 2002-01-3301". doi:10.4271/2002-01-3301. Retrieved November 10, 2021. https://www.sae.org/publications/technical-papers/content/2002-01-3301/ ↩

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  23. "High-Speed Scout And Attack Compound Helicopter". Retrieved February 26, 2024. https://www.swiftengineering.com/product-development/s-97-raider/ ↩

  24. "Fully Autonomous Extra Large Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (XLUUV)". Retrieved February 26, 2024. https://www.swiftengineering.com/product-development/echo-voyager/ ↩

  25. "Swift Joins Sikorsky-Boeing Defiant Team To Deliver Next Generation Vertical Lift". Retrieved February 26, 2024. https://www.swiftengineering.com/press/swift-joins-sikorsky-boeing-defiant-team/ ↩

  26. "Swift Engineering Selected for the Design and Construction of FARA Airframe for Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company". December 23, 2019. Retrieved February 26, 2024. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/swift-engineering-selected-design-construction-110000133.html ↩

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  29. https://minijets.org/en/300-500/pwc-610f/eclipse-concept-jet/ Eclipse Concept Jet (ECJ) https://minijets.org/en/300-500/pwc-610f/eclipse-concept-jet/ ↩

  30. "Swift Joins Sikorsky-Boeing Defiant Team to deliver Next Generation Vertical Lift" (Press release). https://www.newswire.com/press-release/swift-joins-sikorsky-boeing-defiant-team-to-deliver-next ↩

  31. Press (May 1, 2020). "Swift UAS Teams Break New Ground in Japan". sUAS News - The Business of Drones. Retrieved March 15, 2023. https://www.suasnews.com/2020/05/swift-uas-teams-break-new-ground-in-japan/ ↩

  32. "Swift Engineering Inc. successfully flies VTOL drone Swift020 in Kobe, Japan". sUASNews. November 5, 2018. Retrieved December 12, 2019. https://www.suasnews.com/2018/11/swift-engineering-inc-successfully-flies-vtol-drone-swift020-in-kobe-japan/ ↩

  33. "Swift021 – A Fully Autonomous VTOL UAS". Swift Engineering. https://swiftengineering.com/swift020/ ↩

  34. Schroth, Frank (April 29, 2017). "Swift Engineering's VTOL Solutions for the UAS Industry – the Swift 020". https://dronelife.com/2017/04/29/49104/ ↩

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  36. "NASA Small Business Partnership Prepares Drone for 30-Day Science Flights". August 4, 2020. Retrieved November 10, 2021. https://www.nasa.gov/feature/ames/nasa-small-business-partnership-prepares-drone-for-30-day-science-flights/ ↩

  37. "Swift Ultra Long Endurance (SULE) Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV), Phase II". Retrieved November 10, 2021. https://data.nasa.gov/dataset/Swift-Ultra-Long-Endurance-SULE-Unmanned-Air-Vehic/i9cw-bz9c/data/ ↩

  38. Swift Engineering (July 20, 2020). "American made Swift High Altitude Long Endurance UAS Completes Landmark Flight" (Press release). https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200720005719/en/American-Swift-High-Altitude-Long-Endurance-UAS-Completes-Landmark-Flight/ ↩

  39. Kim Stevens (November 21, 2024). "Swift Engineering SULE High-Altitude, Long-Endurance Platform Reaches Stratosphere at 56,000 Feet in 24-Hour-Plus Flight" (Press release). Retrieved December 3, 2024. https://www.stateaviationjournal.com/index.php/national-news/swift-engineering-sule-high-altitude-long-endurance-platform-reaches-stratosphere-at-56000-feet-in-24-hour-plus-flight ↩

  40. "Nick Barua: Creating Opportunities through Innovation". March 15, 2023. Retrieved August 3, 2023. https://theincmagazine.com/nick-barua-creating-opportunities-through-innovation/ ↩

  41. "HyperKelp Collaborates with Northrop Grumman to Monitor Glacier Melt". Retrieved June 27, 2023. https://www.prweb.com/releases/hyperkelp-collaborates-with-northrop-grumman-to-monitor-glacier-melt-885649418.html ↩

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  45. "Govt signs $17 mil. contract for drones". The Nassau Guardian. December 17, 2019. Retrieved January 14, 2021. https://thenassauguardian.com/govt-signs-17-mil-contract-for-drones/ ↩

  46. "Swift Engineering Selected for the Design and Construction of FARA Airframe for Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company". Bloomberg.com. December 23, 2019. Retrieved January 14, 2021. https://www.bloomberg.com/press-releases/2019-12-23/swift-engineering-selected-for-the-design-and-construction-of-fara-airframe-for-sikorsky-a-lockheed-martin-company ↩